stivers



,2 Sheets-Sheet 1'. G. 11w, STIVERS. v SHIFTING SEAT FOR VEHIGLES.

' (No Model.)

Patented 11 50. 11, I894. 1

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

G. E. W. STIVERS. $HIFTING SEAT FDR VEHICLES.

No; 530,608. Patented Dec. 11, 1894.

UNITED STA P TENT OFFIC GEORGE w. s'rlvnns, or NEWYORK, N. Y.

SHIFTING SEAT FOR VEHICLES.

SPECIFICATION forming art of Letters Patent No. 530,608, dated December 11,1894. 1

Application filed May 17,1894. Serial 110. 511.607. (No mocleh) To all whom itmay concern..-

Be it known that I, GEORGE E.W. STIVERS," a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county and State ofNewYork, have invented certain new and useful Im provements in Shifting Seats for Vehicles, of

which the following is afull, clear, and exact description, such as will enablethoseskill'ed in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the acoompanyin g drawings.

' This invention relates to improvements in that. class of yehicles which are ordinarily termed driving traps. It particularly applies to a mechanism whereby a shifting seat may be adjusted to'several difierent positions.

It has for its object the provision of such a nipulated to its various adjustments.

l-leretofore shifting seats of this classhave been formed by supporting the seat proper upon legs or standards hinged to the floor or other portions of the vehicle, or the seats have been carried upon other mechanisms of a more or less complicated construction. In these instances, the supports are liable to get out of order, wear loose, are hard to operate, and are limited in the number of their adjustments, and often owing to, their size, occupy so much room as to almost render the body unavailable to carryparcels, (to; In thepresent instance it is proposed to overcome these objections by doing away with legs or other similar supports. It is proposed to support theseat by forming'in the sides of the body grooveswith which projections extending from the ends of the seat can be placed in registration. In this way theseat, by means of the peculiarly formed grooves, can be variously adjusted to M the several positions hereinbefore mentioned,

or movedout of the way beneath the front seat, therebyleavingthe main body entirely freefor the reception of parcels, &c.

Theinvention also"consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts such as will be hereinafter fully described, pointed out in the ,appended'claims, and illustrated. in the accompanying drawlugs. "In the. accompanying drawings, in which similar letters of reference designate corre sponding parts, Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a vehicle embodying the invention, showing in full lines the, seats in a dos-a-dos position, each having its own back support in an operative position. It also shows in dotted lines two other" adjustments of the shifting seat. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing in full lines the shifting seat stowed away beneath the forward seat. In dotted lines other adjustments are shown. Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig.4 is a detail sectional view showing portions of the shifting seat and the sides of the body, and the lugs projecting from the ends of the former and engaging with the grooves in the latter. Fig. 5 is a similar view, showing the locking bolts which are adapted to secure the seat in any of its adjustedpo- 1 sitions. Fig. 6 is a detail view showing a plan ofthe shifting seat, the back-being removed. Fig. 7 is a detail view, partly in section, showing the locking bolt and the lug adapted to engage with the groove formed in the side of the body. Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view, showing the inner face of one of the sides of the body.

Referring to the drawings by designate the sides of the body of a vehicle, which may be of any construction suitable in the premises. In the present instance it is what is'ordinarilyterlned a driving trap or carriage. I I

B desigantes the Wheel well, and O the forward seat. The latter is supported upon raised portions of the sides A, A, being hinged at one end to one of the sides by the hinges c, c, and provided at its opposite end with lugs c, 0', adapted to register with suitable sockets formed in the opposite side, whereby the seatwill be firmly held in place. The

letter, A, A,

seat is 1POVid6d. with the customary back D By having the seat. hinged in this manner ac. cess to the rear seat can be easily had.

In each of the sides A, A, grooves e and f are formed. The groove e extends from a point immediately above the wheel well and .below the front edge of the. forward seat'to the upper edge of the side to a point back of the front seat. The other groove, fi starts at a point situated at a considerable distance to the rear of the starting point of the first groove, but on the same level with the same. This groove extends to the rear and-upward to the edge of the side to apointsituatedponf. siderably in the rear of the upper end of the. first mentioned groove. The grooves e and f are respectively. provided with openingse" and f which lead'out of the saidigrooves, A- slot or groove gis also formedin eachof] the sides A, A, near the upper edge andjin the rear ofthe same. It is provided'withanopening g7, which leads to thetop of the.si.de. These grooves, e and f, are respectively providedwith irons e and f The Iatteriron, f is continuedlover the groove g, These irons may. serve to simply protect, the groovesa-ndto serve no purpose in holding the shifting seat in place; but in the present instance. they serve both to protect the grooves and. to aid, in conjunction with. the headedlugs projecting from the seat, in supporting and'lholding the latter. These irons may be either.- forged or cast, but preferably forged, asa. more finished appearance can be secured. These irons partly cover their. respective. grooves and each has an openinggor open: ings, which follows the path, or pathsoflits. respective groove, or grooves. Thewidthof this slot is less than that of the grooves. The. object of this will beexplained fartheron.

H. designates the shifting seat, provided with a hinged back H. Projecting from each. end are lugs. h, It, provided withheads 72?, hi. These lugs areas far apart as. the distance, between the lower endsof the groovese and. f. It is also to be observed that the distancesbe tween the openingseand f', and.fandgf, is the same as the distance between.thelugs. h and h. Thepurpose of these lugs is to. support the seat by-their respective registration with the groovese, e, and f, f, and. their, engagement with the side irons partly. covering the grooves; alsoby means. of; these I lugs, inconjunction with; the.grooves .e,,e, f, f, and g, g, and, the sideirons, the. several adjustments of the seat. can. be secured.

Assuming theseat to beintheposition. shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, beneath, the. forward seat ofv the vehicle, to adj ust.it;.to a

dose-dos position, it isslid to the rear, until the lugsreach the upperendsof their respect; ive grooves, where theseat will. takea-horizontal positionimmediately back of .thet'ront seat. and flushwiththe tops of. thesides A, A.

Itis to be observed that the backlof theshifting seatis folded under the latterdu-ring, this adil. justment. 1 After being adjusted to this posi tion, an occupant of the seat can use the back restoftheforward seat. If it shouldbe desired to adj ust the seat so as to face the rear but to allow the use of its-own back, the lugs h, h, are disengaged from the slots and the seat is turned on the lugs h, h, until the lugs .h, h, pass through the. openings g, g, and register with the grooves g, g. By so turningthe seat it ismoved more to the rear, and thebackbrought into such a position'that it canbe used. When the shifting seat is used facing to the rear, the end gate is lowered to 'form a foot rest as shown in Fig." 1.

If, itqshould; bedesired to have the seat facing. to the front, it can be readily removed from the slots andturned andplacedin the. position. shown by. dotted lines. in. Fig, 2. Whenin this-.positionthe. end gate isclosed.

From. this latter. positionit. can be..q.uickl'y:- turnedto a ,dos-a dos. positionbye-releasingjhe.

lug 1 'and tun a eseattqn he uss h, untilithe formerflllg engagewith the slots.

e, e. From this. latterr position, the. seat-:can: be shovedunderthe. forward. seat, as. shown.

in Fig. 2.

The grooves fif, and g, g, and:the.;gro0vesz e, e,if. desired, can be. extendedbeyond: the

openings leadinginto them s othatwhen the;

the seatv isplaced' in,positionzthelngsswill.be. out of register-with the. said openings; and

thereby lessenthe liability of. displacement.

Spring pressed bolts L, L, ar.e. provided so that the seat, byv meansofj thesame. and: suit. ably for-med sockets, can. be securelylocked -Pla e intheedge of the seat' so. astobeeasily. accessible.

The end gate Miis attachedto.thefioor. of the. body. by, the. hingeem, m andgit. is pro:

vidfedv with, the. chains. m, m, whereby.the= gate. can be lowered. to for na footrest when" the seat isineither. of thedos-a-d'os positions.

The gate isprovidedrwiththe usual,mech-an.-.

ism forsecuring it whenelosed...

These. bolts, are preferably, seated.

The vehicle can beupholstered in any-de:

sired manner. Itisto be observed thatiwf-hen the shifting, seat is moved; under theforward .seat, there is considerableroom. between the.

,twoseats which can be-utilizedfor the stow .in; a\ v.ay. of cushions, and therebyleavethe n1a'inpart of the body free to receive bun: dles, & c.

and difierently formed irons.may. be .used

fis-

the shifting seat having projections adapted While the device as abovexdesor ibed is .the. preferredconstruction of theinventio n, yetit 1 can, bev departedfrom, toa. considerable. ex.-v tentlwithout departing fromthespiritof. the. linvention. For. an. instancethe. grooves in; the sides; mayt traversethe, latter. differently, v

7 Havingthusdescribed myinventiom whatl, claim, and, desire-to secure by Letters. Rat'ent,

1. Ina vehicle.thecoinbination.ofthesides got the bodythereof,the said sides .havin-gin, {clined, grooves. traversing the. inner. faces. ;thereof; and: horizontallocking grooves, and.

to engage with and to move in the said grooves, substantially as described.

2. In a vehicle, the combination of the sides of the body thereof, the seat mounted on the forward ends of the said sides, the said sides having grooves formed in the inner faces of the same leading from beneath the first men tioned seat to the rear and to the top of the said sides, and the shifting seat provided with projections adapted to register with the said grooves, and to move therein, substantially as described.

3. In avehicle, the combination of the sides of the body thereof, the seat movabl y mounted on the forward ends of the same, the said sides cs0. E. W. STIVERS.

Witnesses:

HENRY W. GEIS, a WILLIAM H. WITHERSPOON. 

